CH2M Employee Reviews about "ch2m hill"
58% would recommend to a friend
(22 total reviews)
Jacqueline Hinman
56% approve of CEO
Found 22 of over 1K reviews
Updated 15 Apr 2023
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Top Review Highlights by Sentiment
Excerpts from user reviews, not authored by Glassdoor
- "The people were great to work with and helped you grow and realize your potential based on where you wanted to go." (in 125 reviews)
- "Unfortunately bad managers can ruin the good policies and act of their own accord." (in 29 reviews)
- "CH2M upper management cares more about getting new business, then trying to fix a broken system." (in 27 reviews)
Reviews about "ch2m hill"
Return to all Reviews- 2.010 Jan 2011Anonymous EmployeeCurrent Employee
Pros
Work life balance. There have been many changes at CH2M HILL and most of the pros have been taken away based on culture chanegs that the new CEO has implemented.
Cons
CH2M HILL was once of the best places to work. Employees were empowered and encouraged to create new and exciting business plans...not now. Ralh Peterson was the CEO and believed in the people and gave them room to make changes even at the lowest levels. Now, Lee McIntire is removing the culture (The yellow book means nothing now), eliminating jobs, and removing the basic foundation that made CH2M HILL a great place to work. Many senior leaders are leaving because of the changes that are being made. They are shutting down an entire building at COR (Denver) because they have laid off or fired people...thus leaving the same amount of work for a lot less people. The low pay wasn't really an issue but when they removed the positive work-life balance there is no longer a reason to say CH2M HILL is a great place...because it is not. Don't work for CH2M HILL unless you like traveling and being away from home a lot. They don't care where you live because they will send you to places for long periods of time. When the project is over they will let you go if you can't find a new project. Work is limited and if you can't stay billable to a client you're laid off. Stress is high in all groups!!! You have been warned. Accept the job offer at your own risk. I spent 14 years at the company and received great year reviews but once Lee was promoted to CEO the company shifted in a negative way.
2 - 5.021 Jul 2011Anonymous EmployeeFormer EmployeeCorvallis, OR
Pros
I really enjoy working for CH2M Hill because the supervisors actually care about your development. Feedbacks are given constantly. They are really flexible with work schedule. Most important thing is to complete your work.
Cons
The only bad thing about working at CH is if you are a designer, there are limited offices where you can work.
- 1.07 Dec 2013AdministrationCurrent Employee, more than 5 yearsPortland, OR
Pros
New CEO coming next year. Maybe her leadership and ideals will improve our business. Great people. My coworkers are amazing and fun. Cool company events (once a year). Community involvement. Exciting projects. Although I work in administration, I love hearing about projects we're working on. Generous vacation time (still have to work Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, though).
Cons
Too focused on bottom line. Cut health care plans and make employees pay quadruple out-of-pocket expenses. Give bonuses to senior people already making big bucks, while those struggling to survive receive 1% pay increases (that don't even cover inflation, benefit fees). Cut quality and replace with quantity to reduce overhead. Major foreign firm acquisitions to hide the fact they can't pay out for employee-owned company stock. It's all about buy buy buy. Senior employees have more invested in employee stock than CH2M Hill can cover. To balance this, they buy other engineering firms (VECO, Halcrow) and fire most of their upper-level (read: EXPENSIVE) employees shortly after acquisition. Laying off (or worse, demoting to part-time) experienced engineers and replace with fresh-out-of-college, cheap engineers. Managers unethical, over-sharers. I know way more about my coworkers' medical conditions than I should. I can't trust upper management, nor HR. Good employees leaving CH2M Hill for competing firms, and in turn, losing large clients and projects. Business groups are like islands. No groups are alike or even communicate. Their practices and behaviors are like oil and water. Displaying and distributing The Little Yellow Book (company ideals written by a co-founder) is a little degrading at this point. It focuses on keeping employees and clients happy, which CH2M Hill hasn't considered in years.
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CH2M Response10yThank you for taking the time to review CH2M HILL. We will pass your feedback along to Senior Management.
- 3.07 Aug 2014Project ManagerCurrent Employee, more than 8 yearsSan Francisco, CA
Pros
Generally positive environment. Global profit center orientation allows me to work on projects anywhere (unlike former employer in which no one outside a particular office/profit center is used). Not totally down on pay in other firms, but from what I can tell pay is above average. Good coworkers. Not public traded, so rapacious profit drive deadened, allowing CH2M HILL management to treat employees better than publicly traded firms.
Cons
Quality of benefits declining over the last number of years. Recent decline in new business in adversely affecting workloads.
2 - 3.016 Mar 2010Staff EngineerCurrent Employee
Pros
CH2M Hill is a great name to have associated with your career portfolio. You will meet a lot of talented individuals. Some offices are full of wonderful people that make coming to work a joy every day (even Monday's).
Cons
Employee development is not openly supported. It is difficult to obtain funding from the company for just about anything. It is not easy to actually try something new or to get involved in cross business opportunities. Because the company is so big, overhead costs are astronomical and employee salaries for junior level employees are well below average. Benefits do not help to bring the total compensation package up to par. As an engineer, I have not felt challenged and I have not gotten opportunities to really use the skills that I acquired in college. There seems to be a general lack of participation by upper management to help develop a career path with specific goals or milestones for junior level staff. It isn't what you know in this company, it is who you know that will help you attain your goals and help you receive the recognition you deserve. Overall, CH2M Hill is a great place for junior staff to gain experience but probably an even better place to use a career stepping stone.
3 - 3.031 Oct 2014Anonymous EmployeeCurrent Employee, more than 10 years
Pros
Strong legacy culture; strong/excellent brand image externally; in the right markets; and finally have shed ourselves of the conceit that we could hire second stringers and compete as a builder with real construction companies. Reputation as a great place to work and grow as a professional employee still exists in some offices and markets, but it is at risk.
Cons
Impending brain drain and also loss of internal leadership associated with first time ever voluntary retirement. Senior management now lacks the history of CH2M HILL culture; and events of the past few years have cost management their credibility with staff. Senior managers talk about growth and development but demonstrate they either can't or won't follow through on their commitments.. Rollout of the VRP was a PR disaster... everyone was/is unhappy about who and how -- it was unprofessional in its construct, insulting and will be damaging over the near term. Morale issues will worsen into next year as all staff will be looking over their shoulders awaiting the axe... The best won't wait but rather seek better alternatives.
6 - 5.029 Apr 2009Anonymous EmployeeCurrent EmployeeEnglewood, CO
Pros
CH2M HILL has impeccable ethics; I have full faith in our leadership. The work that CH2M HILL does in the world only helps people and places.
Cons
If you aren't a self-starter, you won't be successful (which isn't a bad thing!).
- 3.03 Jun 2011Anonymous EmployeeCurrent EmployeeAtlanta, GA
Pros
CH2M HILL is a respected engineering firm with a vast array of diverse projects. Employees are given opportunities to travel abroad and enhance their skillsets to provide more value to project teams.
Cons
Salaries for planners could be more on the competitive edges. Besides, this leadership does not micromanage and the work hours are flexible.
1 - 2.09 May 2014Urban PlnnerCurrent Employee, more than 1 yearNew Delhi
Pros
Great learning experience. Exposure to physical planning projects and project co-ordination with nodal agencies for regional planning works as well as approvals. Overall experience was helpful to develop project management skills.
Cons
Salary package was not good enough. Basic salary offer has a difference between the employees of Halcrow and CH2M Hill. Higher Management doesn't listen to junior employees and neither recognize young expertise. Urban Program (Currently F&UE) division in Noida office is not doing good business .
- 4.016 Aug 2010Anonymous EmployeeCurrent EmployeeWashington, DC
Pros
Absolutely some of the best folks to work with. The company's project delivery system is second to none. The comitment to the client is fantastic. The company was willing to listen and respect my advice and comments. I felt like part of a team pointed in one direction and that was to provide an excellent product/service to the client.
Cons
The executive leadership within CH2M Hill was too willing to listen to their senior leaders and were easily misled. The divestature of EMS was a huge mistake and will cause problems in the future for the company.
